Chidambaram counters Jaitley's arguments against JPC probe into Rafale deal

Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram Monday rejected Finance Minister Arun Jaitley's argument against a JPC probe into the Rafale deal, saying the government and Parliament have overruled Supreme Court verdicts in the past, most recently in the SC/ST Act.

His counter came as Jaitley, while ruling out referring the Rafale deal to a parliamentary panel after the apex court verdict against a probe, asserted a political body cannot review what the Supreme Court has ruled and called the Congress "bad losers".

Chidambaram took to Twitter to say, "FM asks 'Is a Committee of Politicians fit to review issues decided by SC?'. When Government/Parliament amended the Atrocities Prevention Act to overrule the judgment of the SC, was it not a review by politicians of a judgment of the SC?".

Chidambaram also said several aspects of the Rafale deal were not decided by the Supreme Court. "Who will examine those issues? Or will they go unexamined?" he asked.

The Congress has been alleging corruption in the Rafale fighter jet deal and demanding a probe by a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC).

Jaitley, while ruling out referring the Rafale deal to a parliamentary panel, said a political body cannot review what the Supreme Court has ruled and launched a blistering attack on the Congress.

The Finance Minister also said the CAG's view of the deal is not relevant after the Supreme Court's clean chit.

"After the Supreme Court has spoken the last word, it gets legitimacy. A political body can never come to a finding contrary to what the Court has said," Jaitley wrote in a Facebook blog, titled 'Rafale - Lies, Shortlived lies and now further lies?'.

Both houses of Parliament witnessed uproarious scenes on Friday and Monday amid a demand for the JPC probe into the Rafale issue.